8am: When commanders and fighters from within the group face accusations of sexual relations outside marriage, the Taliban often protect their own. Instead of enforcing the Sharia punishments they claim to uphold, they conceal these acts by imposing forced marriages. These accounts follow earlier findings by the Hasht-e Subh Daily, which documented in multiple reports
Amu: Public employees in Afghanistan say unpaid salaries are pushing many into severe financial difficulty as winter temperatures drop and the cost of food and healthcare rises. Employees said wages for the months of Qaws and Jadi (November and December) remain unpaid, despite payroll documents and financial reports having been submitted to the finance ministry
Afghanistan International: Afghanistan’s ambassador and permanent representative to the United Nations in Geneva said Taliban leader Hibatullah Akhundzada has become increasingly isolated and is under constant scrutiny from foreign surveillance and political pressure. Nasir Ahmad Andisha said Akhundzada disapproves of the repeated visits to Kabul by Zalmay Khalilzad, the former US special envoy for Afghanistan,
8am: Residents of Kabul are increasingly alarmed by a surge in thefts, especially pickpocketing, across the city. They say that despite repeated Taliban promises to guarantee public safety, the group has failed to curb these crimes. According to many residents, pickpockets operate most often in crowded areas, public buses, and narrow alleyways, where people are
RFE/RL: More than a month after a pair of attacks killed five Chinese nationals working at a gold mine near Tajikistan’s remote border with Afghanistan, questions remain over what led to the high-profile incidents that could reshape both countries’ relations with China. Click here to read more (external link).
8am: The Afghanistan Freedom Front has claimed that two Taliban fighters were killed and two others wounded in an attack in Kunduz province. According to the Afghanistan Freedom Front, the vehicle carrying Taliban fighters was also set on fire in the attack. Click here to read more (external link). More AFF News Afghanistan Freedom Front
8am: For more than four years, the Taliban have systematically erased Persian words and expressions from schools, universities, and even city streets. In recent days, images shared on social media have revealed a new phase of this effort. Taliban authorities have removed urban signboards in Kabul, rearranged text, replaced Persian with Pashto, and gone so
Afghanistan International: The latest incident occurred on Thursday evening in Faizabad, the capital of Badakhshan, where armed men shot and killed Mohammad Shah, an Ismaili resident originally from Shighnan district. Shah, who worked for a private office in the province, was attacked in the Dasht-e-Qargh area while returning home from a bakery, according to eyewitnesses.